William Marquez Movies

Veteran actor Andy Garcia steps into the director's chair for his first voyage into feature filmmaking with this heartfelt tribute to revolutionary, late-'50s-era Cuba featuring Dustin Hoffman, Bill Murray, Tomas Milian, and offering the director himself in the starring role. Fico Fellove (Garcia) is the politically neutral owner of the El Tropico nightclub who seeks shelter from the winds of change behind the crowded bar of his flourishing business. Unfortunately for Fico, the blood of the revolution flows deep within the veins of his passionate brothers, and it's only a matter of time before both the club owner, and his distinguished father, are forced to face the prospect of having their lives forever changed despite their indifference to the violence that surrounds them. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Based on Atticus, a novel by Ron Hansen, this Hallmark Hall of Fame presentation stars James Coburn as widowed Colorado rancher Atticus Cody. In the months since Atticus' wife was killed in a car accident caused by his artist son Scott (Paul Kersey), the boy has ached for his father's forgiveness. Alas, though he still loves his son, Atticus is by nature taciturn and distant, and is unable to reach out to the grieving Scott. Upon discovering that his father has kept the wreckage of the "death car" on his ranch, the confused Scott decides that no closure is possible, whereupon he returns to the dusty Mexican village that has long been his home. Later, Atticus receives word that Scott has committed suicide--and upon arriving in Mexico, it is his turn to suffer the pangs of guilt, thanks to the relentless remonstrations of Scott's girlfriend Renata (Lisa Zane). But nothing is quite what Renata makes it out to be, as Atticus discovers to his astonishment upon hearing a cache of "audio letters" recorded by Scott just before his death. A delicate blend of domestic drama and "whodunit", Missing Pieces debuted February 6, 2000, on CBS. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

A lengthy spell of calm weather may cost professional stormchaser Calvin (Randall Batinkoff) his job with the National Severe Storm Labs. Then, almost miraculously, Calvin's territory is struck by a series of devastating tornadoes. Trouble is, the locals are blaming God for all the destruction, meaning that Tess (Della Reese) is going to have to work overtime to defend her Boss. At the same time, Monica (Roma Downey) hopes to persuade Calvin to stop allowing anger and selfishness to govern his life--but it is a lost child in the center of a violent storm that ultimately puts Calvin on the right track. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Randa Haines directed this dance drama, focusing on young Cuban Rafael Infante (Latino singer Chayanne) after the death of his mother. Rafael leaves Cuba for Houston, where he meets his father John Burnett (Kris Kristofferson) for the first time. Burnette is unaware that the young man is his son, and Rafael can't figure out how to tell him. Rafael's mother was a singer on cruise ships where Burnett was a dance instructor. Burnett owns the Excelsior Dance Studio, and he gives Rafael a handyman job there, where he meets and falls for the Ruby (Vanessa L. Williams) a beautiful professional dancer. With the Las Vegas World Open Dance competition in a few weeks, dancers work on their routines, and Ruby aims for the Vegas prize. Rafael partners with Patricia (Jane Krakowski) after Burnett loses interest in the competition, and Ruby dances with her brutish ex-boyfriend, the father of her young son. Then it's on to Vegas. This film features great dance numbers and an homage to Gene Kelly beneath a sprinkler system. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide

Director Andrew Davis followed up the action blockbuster The Fugitive (1993) with this Capra-esque box office dud that nevertheless featured engaging dual performances by Andy Garcia. Garcia stars as Ruben and Robby, twin brothers who were raised separately and have become total opposites. Ruben has recently inherited a 40,000-acre Santa Barbara estate from his eccentric guardian, Mona (Holland Taylor). A friend to artisans and migrant workers, Ruben wants to transform the land into a commune, while the cold-hearted Robby wants to steal it from his brother, develop it and make millions. Muddying the waters are Lou (Alan Arkin), a quick-thinking ex-cop and pal of Ruben's who is able to manipulate the law to his own purposes, Eddie (Joe Pantoliano), a shark lawyer who plays both sides against the middle, and Ruben's ex-wife Laura (Rachel Ticotin). When each brother masquerades as the other for a time, however, some insights are gained by both. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide

B-movie director Rafal Zielinski adds another sordid tale to his CV with this C. Thomas Howell vehicle. In the film, Howell plays a cop who gets involved with a murder witness, only to find out that she's part of an international ring of sex-for-hire beauties. ~ Michael Hastings, All Movie Guide

Like its theatrical-feature precursor Not Without My Daughter, the made-for-TV Desperate Rescue is based on a true story, though it would appear that several liberties have been taken. Mariel Hemingway plays a young mother whose daughter Lindsay Haun is abducted by Andrew Masset, Mariel's Jordanian ex-husband. Masset takes the girl back to his native Jordan, beyond the reach of the US authorities. Denied aid and comfort by the American government, Mariel takes matters into her own hands, hiring ex-Delta Force commandos Clancy Brown, Jeff Kober and James Russo to muscle their way into Jordan and rescue Lindsay. Based on an article by David Halevy and Neil C. Livingstone, Desperate Rescue premiered January 18, 1993: its title at that time was Desperate Rescue: The Cathy Mahone Story. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Bette Midler stars as a Martha Raye-type entertainer during the World War II era in this big-budget nostalgia piece. Midler plays big-band singer Dixie Leonard, who is chosen to perform at an overseas USO Christmas show by her uncle Art Silver (George Segal), a comedy writer for famed comedian Eddie Sparks (James Caan). Dixie is shuttled to London, where she is thrown on-stage with Eddie, who takes an immediate dislike to her. But her performance is a sensation, and the audience can't stop howling at Dixie's smart one-liner comebacks to Eddie. Dixie is catapulted to stardom, and the repartee between Eddie and Dixie becomes the stuff of legend. The two spar together through World War II, the McCarthy era, and Vietnam. But Dixie stops speaking to Eddie when he fires a writer for being a communist sympathizer and, later, she doesn't speak to him again after he arranges for a reunion between her and her son on the battlefields of Vietnam. Finally, Dixie, now an old woman, is cajoled to appear on a television awards show to reunite with a now decrepit Eddie, age 91. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide

A doctor finds out the hard way that there's more to medicine than skill in the operating theater in this emotional drama. Jack McKee (William Hurt) is a gifted but arrogant surgeon who cares little about the emotional welfare of his patients and is little more than a benign stranger to his wife Anne (Christine Lahti) and his son Nicky (Charlie Korsmo). Jack has been suffering from a nagging cough for some time, and when he begins coughing up blood one morning, he finally allows another doctor to take a look at him. The doctor discovers that Jack has a malignant tumor in his throat that could rob him of the ability to speak, or even kill him. Suddenly, Jack is a patient instead of a doctor, and he learns first hand about the long stretches in the waiting room, the indignity of filling out pointless forms, and the callous attitude of the professional medical community. Jack also gets to know June (Elizabeth Perkins), a terminal cancer patient whose joyous embrace of life as her time draws to a close is an inspiration to him. Restored to health, Jack is determined to be a more caring healer and strives to be a better husband and father, but his new lease on life also earns him an enemy in fellow surgeon Murray (Mandy Patinkin), who wants Jack to lie under oath for him in a major malpractice case; and a new respect for Eli (Alan Arkin), an ear-nose-throat man he used to ridicule for his empathetic treatment of his patients. The Doctor was based on the memoir of real-life surgeon Ed Rosenbaum, entitled "A Taste of My Own Medicine." ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Alexandra Maynard's (Jill Clayburgh) nightmare begins when her wallet is stolen by a psycho. In possession of Alexandra's identification and credit cards, her tormentor is able to follow her all over town, anticipating her every move. Adding to Alexandra's agony are those mocking phone calls from her ubiquitous stalker. But then...then Alexandra's friends and family form a united front, and the stalker finds himself the stalkee. Made for television, Fear Stalk debuted December 17, 1989. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Jeff Bridges plays an LA sheriff who loses his job due to his inability to stay away from booze. While attending an AA meeting, Bridges is invited to attend a party, where he meets the beauteous Alexandra Paul. Also at the party is an old enemy of Bridges', druggie Randy Brooks. It doesn't take long for Bridges to figure out that Brooks is a pimp and Paul is one of his hookers. She begs Bridges to help her break away from Brooks. Not long afterward, Paul is killed, and Bridges crawls back into the bottle. Eventually sobering up, he vows to avenge Paul's death. Much blood is spilled before the killer is revealed (it isn't who you think); along the way, Bridges gets a new lease on life when he falls in love with ex-hooker Rosanna Arquette. An enormous flop, 8 Million Ways to Die is redeemed by Jeff Bridges' powerful performance. One hopes that the orignal Lawrence Block novel wasn't quite as confusing as the film. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

Juvenile actor Henry Thomas, late of E.T., is the star of Cloak and Dagger. Given to telling whoppers, Thomas finds himself in a boy-who-cried-wolf dilemma when he overhears two spies plotting to smuggle valuable info out of the US. When he can't get his own father Dabney Coleman to believe him, Thomas turns disconsolately to a computer game called "Cloak and Dagger" and begins to fantasize, imagining that he is in cahoots with secret agent Jack Flack, also played by Coleman. Finally coming to grips with the fact that the mythical Jack Flack cannot help him this time, Thomas takes on the spies with the help of his schoolmates, who are also "Cloak and Dagger" addicts. Cloak and Dagger is a heavily disguised remake of 1949's The Window; both are based on the Cornell Woolrich story The Boy Cried Murder. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The humor in this Chevy Chase comedy lies solely in the eyes of the beholder. The comic plays Eddie Muntz, an arms dealer looking to make a big sale of war planes to a South American dictator. In order to do so, his girlfriend (Sigourney Weaver) has to sleep with the dictator and his friend (Gregory Hines) has to be convinced to do one more killing. Eddie's archenemy is Stryker (Vince Edwards) who wants to make that deal himself and will stop at nothing to obtain his ends. ~ Eleanor Mannikka, All Movie Guide